Dark Horse #2
Barn Shadows
by Laura Wolfe
A year
after her tumultuous exit from the prestigious Foxwoode Riding Academy,
seventeen year-old Brynlei returns determined to confront her demons and win
Foxwoode's elite Top Rider Award. When she stumbles over an antique doll at the
construction site of a new barn, a series of inexplicable occurrences force her
to question whether her condition as a "highly-sensitive person" is
to blame or if something more sinister is at play.
As Brynlei becomes consumed with discovering the history of the unearthed doll, the bizarre happenings escalate to dangerous levels. She soon realizes that someone close to her is lying. But who? Could a decades-old tragedy and the threatening events at Foxwoode be more closely entwined than she ever imagined?
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Excerpt
Flames
lashed out against the night sky. Plumes of smoke billowed through the windows,
and wooden beams popped and snapped with violence. Brynlei choked on the
ash-filled air as fire consumed the roof of Cabin 5. Her body shook. She’d been
inside the crumbling structure only a moment earlier. Ignoring Bruce’s
shouting, she inched closer to the fire, searching for any sign of Grace. A
gust of wind rushed through the trees, pushing a wall of heat toward her,
scalding her skin. Brynlei raised her arms to shield her face from the
scorching air, but the heat overwhelmed her. She staggered backward and
collapsed.
Snapshots
flashed through her mind: The probing blue eye of the antique doll. The faded,
black-and-white photo in the mess hall. Grace’s empty bunk. The Top Rider
trophy she’d likely never hold. She thought of Rebecca coasting through another
summer at violin camp while Brynlei couldn’t seem to escape the secrets of
Foxwoode. How could this be happening again? A sour weight pooled in her
stomach. Brynlei was the only one with a glimpse of understanding, the only one
who could help. She had to uncover the truth—before it was too late.
Three
Weeks Earlier
Brynlei
adjusted her position on the overstuffed couch in Mindy Preston’s office. It
seemed as if she made one wrong move the fluffy cushions might swallow her
whole. She shifted her weight and righted herself so as not to completely
disappear. Framed diplomas hung in a familiar formation behind the
psychologist’s desk. The paint on the walls had been refreshed at some point in
the last year and a half to a lighter shade of blue.
“It’s nice
to see you again.” Mindy smiled and lowered her plump body into a chair across
from Brynlei. She couldn’t help but notice that Mindy’s chair was trim and
sturdy. The psychologist leaned forward, a notepad resting on her lap.
“Thanks.”
Brynlei nodded and pressed her palms into the cushions. She hadn’t thought it
would be a big deal to come here again, but now she sat on the couch avoiding
Mindy’s expectant eyes. She’d rather be any place at all—anyplace in the world
except back here talking about her feelings with a total stranger. Not that
Mindy was a total stranger. She’d been the only one who understood Brynlei’s
distress after she’d watched the deer die. Mindy had been the one who diagnosed
her as a highly-sensitive person, or ‘HSP’. Still, Brynlei had only agreed to
meet with the woman again because her parents forced her. The meeting had been
her mom’s idea—a prerequisite to her returning to Foxwoode.
“How have
you been?” Mindy leaned forward. Behind the black-framed glasses her eyes held
an earnest look, as if nothing was more important to her than how her patient had
been feeling. Brynlei remembered why Mindy Preston made a perfect psychologist.
“Good.”
“What
brings you in today?” Mindy adjusted the glasses resting on her nose.
“My
parents.” She dug the toe of her shoe into the shag rug in front of her. “I
mean, they said I had to come here before they let me go back to Foxwoode
Riding Academy this summer.”
“Why do you
think they wanted you to do that?”
“I guess
they don’t want me to get distracted like I did last year.”
Mindy
nodded. “Can you tell me more about that?”
Brynlei’s
heart pounded as she began to speak. “Last summer, I finally got to go to
Foxwoode for three weeks. It was a big deal. Someplace I’ve been trying to go
for years.” Brynlei’s feet fidgeted and she forced herself to be still.
“Anyway, I kept noticing a girl in the woods. Strange things happened in my
cabin—items missing, lights turning on and off at night—things like that. I
thought it was a ghost.”“And it
wasn’t?” Mindy cocked her head to one side.
“No. She
was a real person. Caroline Watson. She’d been hiding in the woods for four
years.”
“And no one
knew about this?” Mindy scrunched her eyebrows together.
“No. I
guess I was the only one who noticed her presence there.”
“That makes
sense, given your sensitivities.” Mindy jotted something on her pad of paper.
“How did you feel when you realized that she was a real person and not a
ghost?”
“Like an
idiot. Instead of focusing on riding while I was at Foxwoode, I wasted three
weeks chasing a ghost who wasn’t there.”
“I see.”
“And my
friend, Anna, got kicked out because of me. And I got this other guy, Bruce, in
trouble, too.”
“And
Caroline? She’s okay?”
“Yeah. She
might even be better off now.” Brynlei plunged deeper into the couch before
sliding herself forward. “I had to tell Caroline’s secret in order to save a
horse that had been injured.”
“So some
good things happened because of these distractions you mentioned?”
“I guess.”
Brynlei swallowed, but her throat was dry. “I’m a little nervous about going
back to Foxwoode. People might make fun of me or even be angry.”
“Yes. I’m a
highly-sensitive person, remember?”
Mindy
smiled. “Of course. Will you see these people again? Anna, Bruce, and
Caroline?”
“Yeah, Anna
is coming back. We kept in touch. I emailed Bruce to apologize for getting him
into trouble, but he never responded. And I’ve talked to Caroline a couple of
times. She’ll be working as a riding instructor at Foxwoode this year.”
“It sounds
like you’ve done all the right things.” Mindy crossed her arms in front of her
chest. “You can only control yourself. You can’t control how other people
respond to you.”
Brynlei
nodded. She had done everything in her power to make things right. If only she
could return to Foxwoode and leave the drama behind, focus on nothing but
winning Top Rider.
“Let’s go
back to your sensitivities.” Mindy flipped a page in her notebook. “You’ve seen
ghosts before. I remember you telling me about your grandma the last time you
were here.”
“Yes.”
“So, it
wasn’t so outlandish that you thought you saw a ghost at Foxwoode.”
“I guess
not.”
“Have you
had any experiences like that lately? Seeing people who are no longer alive?”
“No. Not
lately.” Brynlei’s childhood friend, Mr. Brentwood, popped into her head. Her
parents had assumed Mr. Brentwood was imaginary, but they were wrong. They just
couldn’t see him. That was a long time ago, though. She didn’t feel like
explaining it to Mindy.
“When I saw
you last, you’d been ruminating over negative thoughts. The deer being hit by a
car, things like that.” Mindy tapped her pen. “Have you had problems with those
kinds of obsessive thoughts lately?”
“Not
really.” Brynlei shifted her weight on the enormous cushion. She averted her eyes
to stare at the diplomas hanging behind the desk. Suddenly, heat rushed to her
face. She closed her eyes as a flood of worries overcame her.
“Brynlei.
If there’s something that’s bothering you, now is the time to talk about it.”
Brynlei
exhaled. “Well, there are a few things I’ve been thinking about.”
“Why don’t
you tell me about them?” Mindy leaned forward even farther.
She started
with Luke. She’d spent way too much energy on him; it would be a relief to get
that situation off her chest. Only, once Brynlei opened her mouth, she couldn’t
stop talking. She told Mindy about her date with Luke. About Jackson Woods.
About her college applications and uncertain future. She didn’t know which
direction to go or how she’d survive without Rebecca. The closer college
loomed, the more she worried she was running out of time to own a horse of her
own.
“It looks
like we’re just about out of time.” Mindy nodded toward the clock on the wall.
Brynlei
swung her head around to follow the woman’s gaze. How had time passed so fast?
The original purpose of her visit returned to her.
“So...”
Brynlei paused, her breath shallow in her throat.
“So?” The
psychologist cocked her head.
Brynlei’s
knee bounced under her hand. At last, she exhaled and the all-important
question spilled out with her breath: “Will you give me the green light to go
back to Foxwoode?”
“I’m going
to tell your parents that I think you are a thoughtful, caring young woman who
is capable of dealing with life’s ups and downs and anything Foxwoode throws at
you this year.”
“Remember
the breathing exercises to calm your anxiety.”
“Okay.” She
envisioned the steps she’d taken so many times: in through her nose, out
through her mouth.
“And
Brynlei, try to replace negative thoughts with positive thoughts.”
“Okay.” She
wasn’t sure how that would solve anything, but she’d give it a try.
“Have a
wonderful time at camp.” Mindy stood and held out her hand. Brynlei flailed in
the pillows before emerging from the cocoon-like couch. She shook the
psychologist’s hand and walked out the door, not sure if she’d resolved any of
her issues. Still, her shoulders felt looser, as if some of her worries had
floated away.
“How’d it
go with the shrink?” Rebecca peered over the top of two cups of Starbuck’s
coffee on the table, her tangle of auburn curls pulled into a messy ponytail.
The door jingled as two customers entered the coffee shop. Steam hissed from
behind the counter.
“Fine.”
“You still
crazy?”
“Yep.”
Brynlei smiled. She didn’t expect anything less from her best friend.
“I could’ve
told you that for free.” Rebecca smirked.
“I’m
leaving in the morning.”
“Me, too.”
Rebecca was
heading to violin camp at Interlochen while Brynlei was at Foxwoode, just like
last summer.
“I’ll text
you when I get back.”
“Sweet.”
Rebecca slurped the foam off the surface of her latte. “Piece of advice. When
it’s time to tell ghost stories around the campfire, why don’t you shove your
fingers in your ears? Or better yet, jump in the lake.”
Brynlei
rolled her eyes. “Thanks. I’ll remember that.”
“It’s the
least I can do. And I do mean the very least.”
Like so
many times before, the two girls erupted into laughter.
Laura Wolfe
LAURA WOLFE has been writing stories ever since
winning the prestigious 'Young Author' award in the first grade. It wasn’t
until years later that Laura realized everyone in her class received the same
award, but by then it was too late. She’d been bitten by the writing bug.
Today, Laura combines her love for writing with her other passions. She is an
accomplished English rider, animal lover, and environmental advocate. When
she’s not writing, she can be found playing games with her highly-energetic
kids, horsin’ around at the barn, cooking vegan food, or spoiling her rescue
dog.
Laura holds a BA in English from the University of Michigan
and a JD from DePaul University College of Law. Her writing has been published
in multiple magazines, including Practical Horseman. Laura lives in her home
state of Michigan with her husband, son, daughter, and dog. She dreams of
living in a log cabin on a minimum of one hundred acres, ideally, in a slightly
warmer climate.
Website: AuthorLauraWolfe.com
Facebook: Facebook.com/AuthorLauraWolfe
Twitter: @LauraCWolfe
Blog: RockingHorseWriting.com
Goodreads: Laura Wolfe
Facebook: Facebook.com/AuthorLauraWolfe
Twitter: @LauraCWolfe
Blog: RockingHorseWriting.com
Goodreads: Laura Wolfe
Available Dark Horse
Series
Dark Horse #1
Trail of Secrets
by Laura Wolfe
Spending three weeks of her summer at the elite Foxwoode
Riding Academy in northern Michigan should have been one of the happiest times
of sixteen year-old Brynlei’s life. But from the moment Brynlei arrives at
Foxwoode, she can’t shake the feeling she’s being watched.
Then she hears the story of a girl who vanished on a trail
ride four years earlier. While the other girls laugh over the story of the dead
girl who haunts Foxwoode, Brynlei senses that the girl—or her ghost—may be
lurking in the shadows.
Brynlei’s quest to reveal the truth interferes with her plan
to keep her head down and win Foxwoode’s coveted “Top Rider” award. Someone
soon discovers Brynlei’s search for answers and will go to any length to stop
her. When Brynlei finally uncovers the facts surrounding the missing girl’s
disappearance, she must make an impossible choice—protect a valuable secret, or
save a life.
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